In breaking news (that that should not come as a surprise to anyone), former Fox host Eric Burns has made it publicly clear that Fox News is more of a cult of uncritical, loyal followers than it is anything resembling an objective news source. He has further named Bill O’Reilly as the de facto leader of this cult, the man that conservatives look up to as a shining beacon of “truthfulness” in what they otherwise perceive as an overly liberal media filled.
In an interview on CNN, Burns describes the meteoric rise of Fox News’s popularity as the result of the perception, flawed or otherwise, that other news channels had a liberal bias, leaving conservatives without a channel of their own to cast current events in a conservative light. But journalism isn’t about tinting the news in any shade you like – it’s about presenting facts and being objective. When Fox News came on the scene, conservatives flocked to it in droves, and their loyalty to the Republican, Tea-bagging ideology skyrocketed. Taking his place at the helm of the cult, Bill O’Reilly has stands as a major figurehead in the conservative media. But much of what makes O’Reilly seem impressive is likely a lie, according to Burns.
He confirms what Keith Olbermann has claimed about O’Reilly specifically and Fox News: that O’Reilly flagrantly lies about his accomplishments and qualifications in order to impress his followers. Olbermann has all the facts to prove this, Burns claims, but even since he’s made them public Fox viewers haven’t yet been swayed. Even with all the evidence in the world, they see attacks on their leader and beloved news source, as jealous lies from a overly-liberal media.
Despite numerous allegations of dishonesty on O’Reilly’s part, no news outlet is willing to make a major story out of this scandal. After having been caught distorting the truth so many times, no one outside the conservative media sphere expects honesty from him anyway, and his loyal followers have no interest in truth or fact. O’Reilly is a bag of hot air that does nothing but fart lies on live television – it is time for him, his posse, and the whole notion of conservative propaganda news to go.